Learning inequalities in the UK during the Covid-19 pandemic

In the United Kingdom, the Covid-19 pandemic has led to two school closures in 2020 and 2021 that forced families and schools to transition to remote learning. There is little research on learning during the second closure period.

Using data from the Understanding Society (USoc) Covid surveys, Nicola will discuss the extent to which levels and inequalities in the uptake of schoolwork changed between both school closure periods caused by the pandemic. He will also recommend policies to mitigate the impact of school closures on the learning loss.

Compared to the first school closure period, the second closure showed an improved provision of schoolwork in both primary and secondary schools. Using the richness of family background data in USoc, it was found that children in families where the main parent was in a service class occupation, where both parents worked from home and where the children had their own computers, spent more time doing schoolwork than other groups - particularly compared to children in families where the main parent was in a routine class occupation, where the child had to share a computer with other family members and where the parents did not work regularly from home. The children of single parents who work from home was a particularly disadvantaged group.

Whilst inequalities between socio-economic groups in the uptake of schoolwork have remained stable between the two school closure periods, better school provision and better family engagement with schoolwork contributed to an improvement in the total hours of schoolwork completed.

This event will be particularly useful for those interested in Covid-19, inequalities, learning and social science.

Related links

• Centre for Learning and Life Chances in Knowledge Economies and Societies (LLAKES)
• Department of Education, Practice and Society